Calyra: $575K in 15 months for an AI calorie tracker that's not Cal AI
Figures are source-labeled by TrustMRR (via RevenueCat) unless another source is cited. WorkAINow has not audited them. Data as of 2026-10-20. In our dataset this record is listed as "Calyra"; TrustMRR lists it under the name "Nutria (9e3eaa)".
The angle: Cal AI made AI photo calorie counting a crowded category. Calyra launched more than a year after it (App Store, App Store) and still reached $46K MRR. Then it went up for sale at a price that values it at under 3× annualized MRR. Here is what the public numbers show about doing well as a follower in this category.
Snapshot
- MRR: $46,050; last 30 days revenue: $81,129; lifetime revenue: $575,237 (TrustMRR)
- Active subscriptions: 14,847; 30-day profit margin: 80% (TrustMRR)
- Founded 2025-07-01 per TrustMRR; App Store release 2025-08-12; seller NUTRIA SAS; rated 4.7 from 139 US ratings (TrustMRR, App Store)
- Not to be confused with nutrIA, a different Chilean app with App Store ID 6744851977 (our nutrIA teardown)
Cheap yearly plans, lots of subscribers
The US App Store lists three plans: $49.99/year, $9.99/month, and a $29.99/year offer (App Store).
- Estimate: about $3.10 MRR per active subscription (method: $46,050 ÷ 14,847). That's about what a $29.99–$49.99 yearly plan works out to per month ($2.50–$4.17). It suggests most subscribers are on a yearly plan, many of them at the discounted price. This is inferred; the sources don't give a plan mix.
- 30-day revenue ($81K) is 1.8× MRR (TrustMRR). That fits upfront yearly payments: cash arrives now, while MRR spreads it over twelve months.
Growth and acquisition
- TrustMRR lists one marketing channel: TikTok (TrustMRR). It doesn't give spend, organic versus paid split, or creatives (unknown).
- Momentum is fading. 30-day revenue is down 23.8% and MRR is down 1.7% (TrustMRR). An archived snapshot from 2026-10-06 shows $46,598 MRR and $91,283 30-day revenue (Wayback). MRR is flat, but new cash coming in is slowing.
The sale
- Listed for $1,500,000 on 2026-10-06, the same day it joined TrustMRR. The price hasn't changed since (TrustMRR).
- Estimate: about 2.7× annualized MRR (method: $1.5M ÷ (12 × $46,050)), or about 2.3× annualized profit (method: $1.5M ÷ (12 × $81,129 × 0.80), using 30-day revenue and the 80% margin). The second is rough, because one strong month of yearly renewals can inflate 30-day revenue.
What other founders can copy
- Follow a proven category. Calyra sells a familiar product (snap a meal, get calories) and still reached 14,847 paying subscriptions (TrustMRR, App Store).
- Use a discounted yearly offer. A $29.99 offer next to a $49.99 list price, plus a monthly option, front-loads cash (App Store).
- Keep costs low. An 80% margin on $81K of 30-day revenue (TrustMRR) means most of the money stays with the business. That's the main thing a buyer pays for.
- Sell while numbers look strong. It listed with MRR near its peak in our history, not after a decline.
Unknowns
- Founder, team size and country (TrustMRR lists none; the seller name, NUTRIA SAS, suggests a French-style company form, but that's a guess)
- TikTok spend, CAC, trial length, paywall placement, churn and refunds
- Android revenue share (TrustMRR's earlier data links a Google Play ID, but gives no per-store split)